Laura's Animals / Wildlife Blog

• Amphibians
• Facts About Amphibians
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Jellyfish numbers are on the rise worldwide according to a global study conducted by scientists from the University of British Columbia. The research team examined data for several species of jellyfish and found that jellyfish populations were increasing in 62 percent of the locations they analyzed. Areas with booming jellyfish populations included the coastal waters of East Asia, the Black Sea, the Northeastern United States, Hawaii and Antarctica.

This study represents the first of its kind done on global scale. Plenty of anecdotal evidence exists for increasing jellyfish populations but this is the first survey that quantifies the trend.

Jellyfish impact humans in a number of ways. They pose a threat to swimmers (their stings can be very painful and depending on the species can even be life threatening). They also clog water intakes for power plants and interfere with commercial fishing.

Photo © Casper Tybjerg.

Conservationists have introduced a new fishing technology that will help to reduce the threat of bycatch to critically endangered waved albatrosses. The technology, dubbed the Medina System, is aimed at making small-vessel bottom-set longline fishing safer for birds.

Current technology poses the greatest threat to seabirds when it is being set and when it is being hauled in. Birds attempt to grab bait and in doing so become ensnared on the line. They often die due to drowning or injury.

By helping to sink lines and bait more quickly, the new fishing technology reduces the chance for seabirds to grab onto bait and become hooked. Since the new aparatus does not weigh much and creates minimal drag, the lines are still easy for fishing boats to haul out of the water.

The new fishing technology was developed through the joint efforts of the American Bird Conservancy and their Ecuadorian Partner, Equilibrio Azul.

Photo © Dan Lebbin / American Bird Conservancy.

The critically endangered Fuertes's parrot is to recieve additional protection thanks to the combined efforts of Fundacion ProAves, World Lands Trust, the American Bird Conservancy and several other conservation organizations. These organizations recently acquired more than 350 acres of habitat critical to the Fuertes's parrot and eleven other threatened species of birds, mammals and amphibians.

Colombia's Fuertes's parrot is among the world's most endangered birds. The species consists of a population of fewer than 250 individuals. The bird is so rare that it was thought to have been extinct for 90 years. It was rediscovered in 2002 by ProAves biologists working under an American Bird Conservancy grant. The ProAves biologists discoverd a small population of about a dozen birds surviing in the high-elevation cloud forest of the Colombian Andes.

Gold mining and deforestation pose the greatest threat to the Fuertes's parrots and their habitat. To protect the rare birds requires constant funding and commitment on the part of conservation organizations. Their efforts have resulted in the establishment of the Threatened Parrot Corridor, a collection of reserves that blend both municiple and private reserves. The corridor covers some 18,000 acres of crucial habitat and now protects about 70 percent of the Fuertes's Parrot population.

Photo © Fundación ProAves.